Recently in Fun and Joy Category

Your immune system is a tremendously sustainable system! But we can exercise it with a dose of... laughter.

John Cleese takes us on a tour of a laughter therapy practice in India.

Laughter promotes stress reduction, community bonding, stronger immune system... and joy. What a simple solution!

In interviews, the first question I get in America is always: "What do you do to stay young?" I do nothing. I don't think aging is a problem. 

What irritates me a little is growing fatter.  It irritates me that if I eat what I want to eat it shows.

Yes, my face has wrinkles. But I don't find it monstrous. I'm so surprised that the emphasis on aging here is on physical decay, when aging brings such incredible freedom. 

Now what I want most is laughs.  I don't want to hurt anybody by laughing -- there is no meanness to it. I just want to laugh."

...as told to Johanna Schneller
O Magazine, September 2009

How would you like a coffeehouse or snack bar named for you? 

Vitalize! Wellness Centre, is a state‐of‐the‐art development that opened as part of the Ecumen community Parmly LifePointes in Chicago City, called Ruben's, named for a 94‐year‐old resident, and lifetime swimmer.  Being active in a local community brings many rewards...and a great community will use its own facilities to acknowledge achievements and inspiring people to further their mission -- including naming facilities after key residents!

The Vitalize! Wellness Centre,  features a warm‐water pool, juicing classes and rows of high‐tech exercise machines that boost a goal of helping residents to seize personal responsibility for "aging well." Ruben Berg is a prime example of that accomplishment, says Patricia Montgomery, the center's director.

She defines aging well as "live long, die short."

A 1998 book titled "Successful Aging," based on results of the groundbreaking MacArthur Foundation Study, taught us the powerful role each of us has in shaping our health and well‐being as we age.

Our genes determine only 30% of our destiny! 
The other 70 percent is up to us!

A decade after the book was published, other studies have confirmed and advanced those findings.

Most people can recite the wisdom of regular exercise, keeping weight within limits and that smoking is bad for your health, says Robert Kahn, co‐author of "Successful Aging"

He sees progress in Americans' understanding of aging well, he says. But it shows up more in what they know than what they do.  Like obesity -- it's increasing rather than decreasing.

Kahn sees too little about why people are living longer and what longer life means, he adds. "Or what a longer and productive and happy life can be."

He wants to see more information circulated about other findings, too, such as the need to challenge our brains often and in new ways to stay mentally sharp. And he'd like to see more about learning and productivity in older people's lives and less about leisure.

We get the hint :-)  So in this blog ... "Solutions for Senior Health" we're focusing on learning and productivity and healthful living!  Good behavior!

Dr. Roger Landry travels the country to educate audiences about aging well and to promote and train care providers in the how‐to of masterpiece living, a plan for successful living inspired by the MacArthur Foundation Study.

Questions remain about how to make it happen. "One is how to engage older adults. They're smart people with interesting lives." But our broader society tends to push them aside. Changing that, he says, would be a "win‐win" for people of every age.

IDEAS:  crossword puzzles and Sudoko and software such as  [m]Power cognitive fitness technology

Spirituality and Social Connectedness -- Solution for Isolation

Understanding of the value of both spirituality and social connectedness is growing, he says. "If we stay in our homes, almost by definition we stay more and 3
more isolated." Studies show that isolation heightens the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, dementia, falling and fractures.

"Alzheimer's disease still terrifies people," Landry says, and many aren't aware there are ways to ward it off.

Americans need to replace high levels of stress, which he calls "our national sickness," with more serenity and soulfulness.

States Are Developing Senior Communities

Cleveland (Ohio) Foundation Successful Aging Initiative (http://www.successfulaging.org), which is developing a three‐year, $4 million plan to create and maintain elder‐friendly communities in the city. Goals include creating lifelong learning and development centers and promoting employment and volunteer opportunities for older people.

Colorado,  (www.silverprintcolorado.org) is developing an independent coalition of individuals, organizations and businesses with a vision  to establish a culture for positive aging and addressing needs, contributions and opportunities for people age 60‐plus.

6 Dimensions of Wellness

• physical
• emotional
• intellectual
• social
• vocational
• spiritual

The hope is that individuals will hold onto an independent spirit. That can mean living one's passion, whether it's a long‐held one, something they've always wanted to try or a new discovery.

SOURCE:  Ecumen, "Senior Housing and Successful Aging in the 21st Century"

Los Angeles County has over 10 million residents, and many of these individuals benefit from the services provided by Community and Senior Services (CSS). Through many diverse programs, community and senior centers provide services that have far reaching effects, and in many cases, make a difference between positive and negative aspects in people's lives.

Every senior center or community center offers differnt programs but here is a list of some of the wide variety that just might be available in your local center of vitality:

• Alzheimer's Day Care    
• Adult Protective Services    
• Community Centers
• Congregate Meals    
• Dietary Support Services    
• Dispute Resolution Program
• Domestic Violence Services    
• Elder Abuse    
• Elder Care
• Employment Services    
• Enhance     Family Caregiver
• Health Insurance Counseling    
• Health & Wellbeing    
• Home (In-Home) Care
• Home-Delivered Meals    
• Integrated Care Management    
• Traditional Legal
• Long Term Care Ombudsman    
• Mediation Services    
• Nutrition
• Senior Centers    
• WorkSource Centers    
• Youth Services

Many senior center programs are free, and special events such as tours or trips might have a modest cost.  Call or check the website of your city and county governments to find listings of the senior centers close to you.  But don't overlook specialized programs that might be offered across town...or just a short ride from your neighborhood.  Carpooling can solve that minor problem... and bring you great riches for spirit and community!
 

How To Write Your Memoirs

Have you thought about writing stories of your own life? It's not as hard as it sounds...and a whole lot of fun when you start with a fun system! That's what Ina offers with her online tips for the "Pawprints Virtual Writing Club".

Some reasons you might consider plucking those notes from the shoebox and developing them now:

• Because your kids and grandkids will be thrilled to find out more about you.
• Because your experiences can help teach others valuable lessons...and fascinate them.
• Because writing your recollections will also help you ... the  process heals old hurts.
• Finally, because it really isn't nearly as hard as you think.  Try it. As Ina says, it's easier than you think!

Step 1.  Create your group--yourself and friends who would also like to tap into their creative genies.

As few as four people can make a very good start, and up to about ten a good limit. This will allow each member to be able to share stories with the group and get feedback as you begin your writing journey together.  As a rule of thumb, meetings should be held in places where your group can be free of others' ears and eyes, should last about two hours, and be held on a weekly basis.  A regularly scheduled time helps reinforce members' commitment. And it keeps the writing juices flowing!

Step 2. Get the Right Workbook to Guide your Project...How to Write Your Memoirs..by Ina Hillebrandt

Get Pawpress'  really easy to use book How to Write Your Memoirs ...Fun Prompts to Make Writing...and Reading...Your Life Stories a Pleasure!, for yourself and friends. As in the Pawprints Creative/Fiction Writing Clubs, founders will get a free copy of prompts from upcoming book "Ina's Weird Prompts" upon proof of purchase of at least 6 copies of How to Write Your Memoirs. (Scroll down to see how.)

Step 3.   In your first meeting, read the introductory section to get some ideas on structures that might work for you.

Once you have determined how you want to proceed, turn to the section in the Table of Contents that relates to your thinking.  Use the prompts (story starters) to jog your memory and write for a half hour during your meeting.  Read aloud and critique, making sure you always reinforce the positive! More tips included in introductory materials if you decide to form a memoir writing support group

Step 4.  Join the InasPawprints.com Online Memoir Writing Club Members receive benefits of being published online, getting ongoing ideas to help keep your group's stories flowing, how to improve recall, how to support each other when a particular memory is difficult, and much more.

Get more details about this fun-filled memoirs club at InasPawPrints.com

To commemorate her birthday , actress/vocalist, Julie Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan's Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP.

One of the musical numbers she performed was 'My Favorite Things'  from the legendary movie 'Sound Of Music'.   Here are the lyrics she used:
 
(Sing along...!)
 
Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,
Walkers and  handrails and new dental fittings,
Bundles of magazines tied up in string,
   These are a few of my favorite things.

Cadillacs and cataracts, and hearing aids and glasses,
Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in glasses,
Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings,
   These are a few of my favorite things.

When the pipes leak, When the bones creak,
  When the knees go bad,
I simply remember my favorite things,
      And then I don't feel so bad.

Hot tea and crumpets and corn pads for bunions,
No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions,
Bathrobes and heating pads and hot meals they bring,
     These are a few of my favorite things.

Back pain, confused brains and no need for sinnin',
Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin', 
And we won't mention our short shrunken frames,
   When we remember our favorite things.

When the joints ache, When the hips break,
      When the eyes grow dim,
  Then I remember the great life I've had,
       And then I don't feel so bad.

 
Ms.. Andrews received a standing ovation from the crowd that lasted over four minutes and repeated encores.